Secrets
by Chloe-lookalikey-reborn
Summary: Clark is captured by a secret compound when Lionel learns of his secret. But is it really Lionel? And will Lex or Kyle Tippit be bale to help him escape?
1. Default Chapter

Secrets part 1: Bullet  
  
Author: Rebecca Gant  
  
Premise: Conclusion to Zero Date written: 10/03/03  
  
Oops I almost forgot. I do not own Smallville or any of it's characters etc, etc. Don't sue me.  
  
Chapter one - The Escape  
  
Jacob lay limply in a heap on the floor. As he came too, the club lights still flashing around the hall, the first thing he noticed was that Lex was gone. As he desperately tried to remember what had happened, 5-armed police officers came through the door, signalling to each other to search the place. Luckily for Jacob he was slightly hidden behind the banister on the balcony so he had time to think. He searched frantically for a way to escape, time running out as the officers closed in on him. Then he spotted an emergency exit across from him. He scooted towards the door on all fours, trying to make as little sound as possible. As soon as he was out of the room he sprinted for his car. Behind him he heard an officer shouting but it was too late, he was already on his way to freedom, and justice. He sped toward Smallville as the last remnants of metropolis faded away in a blur.  
  
* * * *  
  
Clark ran towards the school at a speed that could beat all the Olympic runners put together. As he approached the gate he slowed to a normal pace. "Don't want someone reporting a Clark shaped blur to the torch," thought Clark. He could just imagine his friends headline 'Farm kid faster than a speeding bullet!' He strolled down the hallway brushing past hoards of kids trying feverishly to avoid tardies. When he spotted Lana in the crowd his face brightened up a bit.  
  
Chloe, who was watching him from her locker, rolled her eyes. Typical Clark, nobody ever seemed to notice her. She carried on watching the scene unfold. Some girls have all the luck.  
  
"Hey Lana, how are you?" Clark said, his most charming smile accompanying the greeting.  
  
But his smile was not returned; instead she had a grim look on her face.  
  
She looked up at him with a start.  
  
"Clark.I'm fine," she replied, "I just can't stop thinking about Jacob."  
  
"I know that the past events have been rough for you, with that ." he began.  
  
"You mean my little surprise in a box?"  
  
Clark nodded giving her a sympathetic smile.  
  
"At least Jacob's behind bars now," he said trying to cheer her up.  
  
At that point, Chloe came around the corner.  
  
"Haven't you guys heard?" she questioned, surprised.  
  
"Hey Chloe. heard what?" said Clark, looking completely oblivious.  
  
"Don't you people watch T.V, It was just on the news"  
  
"I've been swamped with the Talon," said Lana.  
  
"And I've had chores"  
  
Chloe's look turned serious.  
  
"Jacob was never caught. They said he escaped just before the cops arrived"  
  
Clark stared at her shocked and annoyed. He had been so busy dealing with Lex that he hadn't thought to double back and check that out. He'd go by Lex's after school and see if he was okay.  
  
Through his next lesson he was too wrapped up in his thoughts to listen. Pete had to nudge him several times, before the teacher finally snapped and told him to stay behind for not listening. Jacob had been driven by revenge. He had sought out Lex to pay him back for what he believed was betrayal and lies. The thing was, even though he kind of had no choice, he was a compulsive liar. Only his parents knew the truth. He'd hate to think what his friends would do if they found out he'd been shielding them from the truth since he'd known them, let alone what they'd say about the whole alien thing. It bugged him more than he'd like to admit, but he couldn't do anything about it. 


	2. Chapter 2

This is where the story begins, kind of. I can't bear slow starts so if it seems rushed, I'm sorry. Enjoy!  
  
Chapter 2 - Betrayal  
  
At lunch Clark was supposed to help Chloe at the torch, but she hadn't turned up yet. He logged onto her computer anyway. He figured he would look over her proofs like he'd been doing since she first came to what she lovingly referred to as this 'leafy little hamlet'. She was a reporter down to the bone. Last week they had been given an assignment to write about a person's life. Of course she had been assigned to Clark and used all her reporter resources to dig up unwanted information about his illegitimate adoption. However when he expressed his discomfort she had agreed to drop it. The screen loaded up and he noticed a locked file entitled Clark. He contemplated whether or not to open it up, but his curiosity got the better of him. He could have gotten through the password anyway, by putting in random words at super speed, but Chloe being Chloe, he could guess what her password was. 'Daily Planet,' he entered in to the computer. The file came up and Clark first noticed various words 'united states charity' being one of them. She hadn't really given up at all. Clark stood up from the computer, disgusted, just as Chloe came in.  
  
"Hey Clark. what's wrong?" she asked acknowledging the hurt look on his face.  
  
"That," he told her, indicating towards the screen.  
  
He stormed out of the room and Chloe, having seen the article on the screen could only watch him leave. The truth was Clark was more scared than hurt. He knew she was persistent but this was ridiculous. If she kept it up he'd be on the front page of every newspaper in the world. That wasn't the sort of thing he wanted from a friend.  
  
* * * * *  
*  
  
Jacob sat at a desk in a dank old caravan at the side of a road, the wallpaper peeling. It creaked and moaned in the wind, suggesting the thing would break down if anyone tried to move it. He was carefully pouring liquid silver (that had an odd green tint to it) into a bullet mould and smoking a pipe. He was going to get justice for his sister even if it meant returning to jail. At first he had wanted to know the full story, but Lex had just made up some lies that made him sound like a hero. He was never going to get the truth. Then he had wanted him dead. Now he realised that death was too easy a price to pay. He was going to get rid of everyone close to him until Lex killed himself. Then he would feel what his sister had felt, the loneliness that had drove her to suicide. This was the only way. He had already done research into Lex's closest friends and found three that suited his purposes. There was of course his father Lionel, a boy named Clark whom had saved Lex's life on numerous occasions and sources told him, they had formed a close relationship, and Lana, a business partner that he'd recently acquired, and seeing the state of the place and the reasons Lex had agreed, he had come to the conclusion that he must care for her. He loaded the last bullet into a handgun that was now full and drove to the mansion.  
  
* * * * * *  
  
"I'm here to see Lex. I have some important information for him," said Jacob, into the intercom.  
  
"I'm sorry Sir but you'll have to book an appointment, he's resting at this time," replied a charming young lady's voice.  
  
He rolled his eyes and pounded the intercom in a fit of rage. He looked around carefully and found what he was looking for, the control panel. He looked down on it, and with no idea how to work the gate controls he shot it. Amazingly this worked and he walked up the drive to the mansion. This was it, his day of revenge. Once inside he set of a canister of sleeping gas, which put everyone on the first floor into a deep sleep.  
  
* * * *  
*  
  
Lex lay on his bed, the curtains drawn, sipping his favourite brandy. Taste in brandy was, in fact, the only thing that his father and he had in common. He had received a call from him earlier. Not to see if he was okay, or be remotely worried about the murderer on the loose (although Lex very much doubted that he would come after him again), but to see if the Kent's where going to sue them or not for the damages done to their farm. It made him hate his father even more. He was never what a father should be and never did what a father should do. His bruised eyes were so sore that he could hardly see. If Clark hadn't discovered him, in the remains of the metropolitan nightclub. he didn't know where he'd be. His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the door opening.  
  
"Who's there? Is that you Randolph?" he asked, referring of course, to his butler.  
  
There was no reply and Lex started to get a bad feeling. The figure walked over to the window and opened the curtains. The sudden light caused him to cover his eyes. When they had adjusted, and he could see vaguely who it was, he gasped. It was Jacob. 


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 - Revenge  
  
Lex stood up slowly.  
  
"What do you want?" he asked, a slight tremble in his voice.  
  
"Revenge," said Jacob fiercely, as he struck him over the head with his gun, causing Lex to tumble helplessly to the floor.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Clark had been let in without a word. The women at the gate had even said he was habit forming and he did have to admit that he did turn up here a lot after school, mostly to chill out and play some pool with his friend. As he started to round the corner he heard a thud from a room on the second floor. He ran to the top in a matter of seconds and listened in at the door. There was a muffled voice inside. He could just hear the murmurs of the word revenge. Without hesitation he rammed into the door. Lex was lying unconscious on the floor and stooping over him was Jacob O'Leary with a gun in his hand.  
  
"Stop," said Clark "just let him go."  
  
"Ah, you must be Clark, how convenient."  
  
"You have to stop hurting people, it won't bring back your sister," Clark tried to reason, having found out all about club zero a couple of days ago.  
  
"You don't know anything about me, or my family. There is only one kind of justice for the acts that Lex committed. Have you ever heard the saying 'whatever you do shall come back on you three folds'?" he asked. At this he pointed the gun at Clark and began to walk towards him as he spoke.  
  
"First you, then Lana, then Lionel," he said threateningly.  
  
As he got closer Clark began to feel weak and slightly nauseas. The meteor rocks. "He must have one on him or something," he thought silently trying to hide the growing waves of pain.  
  
"That's justice," said Jacob, grinning evilly.  
  
Then the gun went off. Clark started to try and dodge the bullet but as it got closer he got so bad that he couldn't move. As though frozen still and only thinking at super speed he could feel only pain and terror as he realised there was nothing he could do. It was going to hit him. "But will it hurt me," he thought in the final instant before.'Slam' the bullet flew into his stomach lodging there. Clark's eyes went impossibly wide. He pressed his hand over the gaping wound and then, as if in a daze, stared at the blood caked hand before him. He fell weakly to the floor. To any normal human this would have hurt like hell, but he had the added waves of darkness that the meteor rock emitted. The he realised that it was coming from inside him. "The bullet." he thought. His eyes rolled back into his head and he passed out.  
  
Lex awoke a good 5 minutes later when Jacob was already long gone. He had no idea of what he was going to find. Clark lay slumped against the wall at the far side of his room unconscious and bleeding heavily from his gut.  
  
"Oh Shit, Clark," he called out to his friend.  
  
He groaned in acknowledgement and his eyes slightly opened.  
  
"We have to get you to a hospital," he said quickly, his heart thumping hard in his chest. Clark was his only friend, he couldn't let him die.  
  
"No," said Clark in a whisper, "You can't tell anyone."  
  
"Clark, you're delirious, you've been shot. I have to call 911."  
  
"Lex please," Clark begged, "Just call my parents."  
  
As much as Lex had to fight all his natural instincts to do so, he agreed. There was something in the urgency of Clark's voice that made him sure he had to. After calling the Kent's, who were so shocked that he had to tell them more than once that he wasn't kidding, he helped Clark onto his bed. He was in a bad state. Sweet covered his body, matting his hair to his forehead, and he had begun jittering slightly. "Where are they?" thought Lex impatiently.  
  
* * * * *  
* 


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4 - Shot  
  
"But how could he be shot?" asked Martha for the 50th time since they'd heard the news.  
  
Jonathon was now careering down the road as fast as the truck would go.  
  
"I don't know Martha, maybe it has something to do with the meteor rocks," he said, "he's strong, he'll get through this."  
  
He was trying to reassure her but in his own mind he was worried crazy. They had never been able to have a child of their own, so when Clark came it had seemed like a blessing. They had decided to give him a normal life so that one day he could choose what his purpose was, instead of being stuck up like a lab rat. What if they had to take him to a hospital? Then all they're efforts would have been in vein. It just didn't bear thinking about. He cared for nothing, more than his family.  
  
* * * *  
*  
  
Clark was no longer in pain. In fact his whole body was quite pleasantly numb. Lex was sitting to the right of him watching him and looking extremely anxious. Then he was aware of someone else entering the room, though he could not see whom, as his vision had become slightly blurred and his eyelids were so heavy that he had to fight to keep them open at all. It was, In fact, Jonathon and Martha. They rushed to his side and made Lex explain the whole thing again. Then he could bear it no longer.  
  
"He has to get medical treatment right away," he said desperately, "this is ridiculous."  
  
"Look Lex, I know you're worried, but trust me. If he goes to a hospital he may as well be dead," said Jonathon, tying to avoid telling the whole truth.  
  
"But Jonathon, if we do nothing he just might."Martha stopped herself before she burst into tears and Mr Kent took her in a tight embrace. Lex wasn't at all happy with the cryptic explanations but he trusted that he would find out in the end.  
  
"There may be a way," he said, "I know a doctor, Toby Matthews, who deals in delicate circumstances. He appreciates discretion and will ask no questions."  
  
The Kent's looked at each other, then at Clark. He had started to mumble to himself.  
  
"Do it," they said in unison.  
  
* * * * *  
*  
  
After an excruciatingly long 5-minuite wait, the doctor finally arrived. Lex's people had been told to let him in. They had all believed that a gas leak had caused them to fall asleep and were making jokes about each other's snoring. None of the had any idea of the potential catastrophe going on upstairs. The doctor got straight to work, taking his pulse and going over possible scenarios to himself. Martha sat next to Clark with her hand in his. They had transferred him to the bed moments earlier and the movement had seemed to make things worse. She hoped that human contact might keep him with them. Each one of them looked intently at the doctor.  
  
"Can you help him?" asked Lex.  
  
"I don't know," he said, not exactly making them feel hopeful. "He bled a lot back there. And it seems as though his body is having an allergic reaction of some sort to whatever this bullet is made of. I'm going to have to operate, but it will be dangerous without a transfusion. Do you know his blood type?"  
  
"Well. he has a very unusual type. I don't think anyone here would have it," said Jonathon quietly.  
  
"Okay, I guess I'll just have to do my best," Said the doctor doubtfully. 


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 - Miracle  
  
* * * * * *  
  
Clark had been aware of a hand in his, but it was gone now. There were voices that he couldn't make out and even his own thoughts were starting to confuse him. He tried to open his eyes. There was a stranger there who was filling a needle full of a liquid. Where was he? Had someone taken him? What was in that needle? A hundred questions floated through his brain, and he became terrified. This was his worst nightmare. Then a memory shot through him like a lightening bolt. "You first, then Lana." Said a voice from his head. He had to get out of here and help her. He tried to sit up as the man came at him with the needle. He could hardly move but he managed to knock the needle out of the man's hand. He shouted something and other people came in. They held him down and he was helpless to stop them.  
  
* * * * *  
  
When they had heard the doctors cries they had rushed in immediately. Jonathon took his right arm and Lex pinned down his left while the doctor once again picked up the needle. He injected Clark with what were only anaesthetics and within seconds he was limp and unconscious. He had turned a sickly green colour that reminded Lex of someone who had been dead for a while and, according to Dr. Matthews; his temperature was at way below average. His exact words were "this isn't a normal temperature for a Popsicle. It was yet another mystery to add to the list of I.O.U 1 answer, questions. They left the room so the doctor could have some privacy again and he began the operation.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Clark's world had been turned upside down, literally. He was watching himself on Lex's bed as though he were having another of his floating dreams. But as much as he hoped this was a dream, it was different. He felt weightless, as though he were only a part of the air. The doctor was making an incision, how he now knew he was a doctor was a mystery to him. Now he could see the cause of the problem. The bullet was being exposed and he could see the green tint that it had. Then one of his body's blood vessels burst. It pumped blood everywhere and he thought it would never stop. He was floating further and further away. But the doctor succeeded in retrieving the bullet. As he desperately tried to stop the bleeding, the wound was already healing. Soon there was no mark on him and he was back in his own body again. Eyes opening. He was still weak, as the meteor rock bullet was lying on the side table, but compared to the pain he'd felt before, it was nothing. The doctor looked at the wound with astonishment. He called the others in and Clark began to sit up. Martha ran up to him and hugged him while Jonathon through the bullet out of the window. Lex hung back and waited. When all the fuss over Clark that his parents made was done, he paid the doctor and he left without a word (although he did walk backwards out the door making sure he wasn't dreaming by staring at Clark). Finally they looked up at Lex.  
  
"Thank you," said Jonathon, "but I can't tell you anything."  
  
"What!" exclaimed Lex, "you can't expect me to just except this. He should be dead."  
  
"You're just going to have to see it as a miracle," he said, defiantly.  
  
Clark interrupted them.  
  
"Lana," he said in a whisper.  
  
And with that he left, just a blur speeding towards the talon.  
  
"Just a miracle huh?" said Lex.  
  
* * * * *  
* 


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6 - Saved  
  
For most of the day, Jacob had been watching the girl work in the Talon; it was just closing up time and now he was ready to strike no. 2 off his list.  
  
"Lana Lang," he said.  
  
"Who's there," she enquired.  
  
"I'm judge, jury," he began as he came out of the shadow, "and executioner."  
  
* * * * *  
*  
  
Clark reached the talon in seconds. He felt up to his full strength but he knew he had to be careful of Jacob. He didn't want to get shot again, or be around those meteor rock tainted bullets. Then he saw Jacob inside and all his reasoning left his head. He rammed himself into Jacob and they, and the gun fell to the floor. Lana picked up the gun on instinct and pointed it at Jacob. Clark was on his back and trying to sit up, but he was feeling so sick that he was sure he would throw up. His dizziness hazed his vision and sweat dripped from his forehead. Jacob stood up slowly. Lana was shakily holding the gun in the same position, towards his head.  
  
"Don't come any closer," she warned.  
  
Jacob merely laughed. He grabbed for the gun and she pulled the trigger. Nothing happened. He grabbed the gun of her and giggled insanely.  
  
"I took the bullets out," he said while reaching into his back pocket to load the gun for real.  
  
"See that's why I'm going to win, I have back-up plans," he explained to her.  
  
"Not quite enough," said a voice from behind him.  
  
It was Lex with 6, armed officers around him. Desperately he grabbed Lana and used her as a shield as he tried to make it to the door. Clark was watching all this from the floor behind the counter. Jacob had forgotten he was even there. As he walked backwards towards the door Clark summoned all the strength he had left and jumped him from behind, knocking the gun out of his hand. Then the officers surrounded Jacob. There was no way he could escape now.  
  
* * * * * * *  
  
"That was too close," said Martha as she hugged him for the 50th time as they walked into the house, back at the farm.  
  
Clark felt so happy to be here that he almost didn't notice Chloe, sitting on the porch.  
  
"I uh.we need to talk," she began as Clark's parents went inside dutifully, " I deleted all the files and I am so sorry that I ever kept them. I only half know why I did. I guess its because you're such a mystery. I wanted to be the first to solve you, does that sound stupid?"  
  
"No, it doesn't sound stupid, after the events of the past few days I realise what a burden secrets and lies can be. For me though, it's something my friends will have to live with, I can't give you what you want."  
  
And with that, he walked into his house, leaving Chloe frowning on the doorstep.  
  
* * * * *  
*  
  
Dr Matthews sat quietly, drumming his fingers on the table while Lionel looked over the information he'd supplied.  
  
"This is excellent work," he told him, "are you certain there were no faults in the testing."  
  
"There's no doubt, the scientists tell me they've seen nothing like it before," assured the doctor.  
  
Lionel was very curious indeed. He picked up the tube again and examined it closely as though he were checking it was real. It was a blood sample and on the side it bore the Label 'Kent, Clark'.  
  
End of part 1  
  
Please tell me what you think of the ending. Originally I put it as the first part of lock and key, but I moved it to here to create suspense. Did it work? 


	7. Chapter 7

Secrets part 2 - Lock and Key  
  
It's the next part. Wahoo.  
  
Chapter 1 - Capture  
  
March 2002, Smallville  
  
A large team of researchers set up equipment all around the lake. The temperature had risen so the ice had melted and the frozen body of a boy that had previously been stuck between ices had now sunk to the bottom. He was very much dead, his eyes frozen in a shocked and panicked response. He'd fallen in the lake and it had somehow frozen around him, an unexplained mystery that these people were very interested in. As they lumbered the body away the team also gathered up small samples of the water and the sodden ground from the bottom of the lake. They had been ordered to gather every shred of evidence.  
  
May 2002, Smallville  
  
Jody lay in a hospital bed. There where long, thin tubes sticking into her, providing various services and, basically keeping her alive. She had experienced a major mutation and was loosing fat too fast for her body to keep up with. Her father refused to be moved. He had stayed there ever since Clark had found her outside the destroyed greenhouse. He sat there, beard unshaven and eyes sore, holding her hand and hoping that one-day they would find a cure. Then a group of doctors whom he had never come across before entered the room. They wore protective masks over their faces, which seemed suspicious. The others had never done that. It was almost as though they were hiding their faces.  
  
"We are here to move the girl to a better hospital," said the leader.  
  
He ordered his companions to put the girl on a stretcher, seemingly dismissing the disgruntled look on her father's face.  
  
"I heard nothing about this, where are you taking her?" asked Jody's father, confused.  
  
But he got no answer out of them. They picked her up and lifted her onto a stretcher. He followed them out, clutching at their arms frantically. When he saw the unconscious doctors all over the floor he began shouting in vein. Then he ran in front of them and kept them back. One of the masked men began to get irritated.  
  
"Look man, get the hell out of the way," he said in a warning tone.  
  
Unfortunately, Jody's dad did not detect it.  
  
"I'm not moving, I'd rather die," he said defiantly, continuing to shout.  
  
The Masked men looked at each other, amused about something. The first took out a shotgun and shot him in mid rant.  
  
"You asked for it man," was the last words of the murderer, as they stepped over his limp form.  
  
He lay on the floor and the last thoughts he had were of his failure as a father. Despair took over him and he spilled a single tear before slumping to the ground, the look of misery etched on his face forever.  
  
July 2002, Smallville  
  
Kyle Tippet was on his way to work. He was working for a charity that helped poor families in Africa to gain the money and homes they needed. What the company didn't know was that he was using his ability to manipulate people, to make them donate. He figured, it wasn't bad if it was helping those more in need, although he did feel a twinge of guilt every time an old lady would raid through her purse and then wonder where the money had gone later. It wasn't easy to be a hero but he was doing just what he'd told Clark to do, use his gift to do great things, and he felt great about his life for the first time. As he came to a set of traffic lights a police car signalled for him to park. He drove to the nearest indentation in the road wondering what they could possibly want. He rolled down his window and immediately was shot in the neck with a tranquilliser dart. As inconspicuously as they could the fake policemen loaded him into the back of the car and drove speedily off.  
  
October 2002, Smallville  
  
Eric Summers was a patient at a hospital in metropolis, although it was more like rehab. He had had a period a month ago in which he had become violent. But this was not because of your normal teenage angst. He had been struck by lightening and gained enormous strength and speed. Then as quickly as he had gotten them they disappeared. Oddly Clark Kent had been involved in this along the way and he had often wondered why the lightening hadn't affected him, as he was also struck. One of the helpers at the so- called hospital came in with a tray of food. He was staving; they couldn't call this place a wonder palace. There was always a dank smell and the company wasn't much to speak of, idiots with no vocabulary and not a great liking of him. Not even his family visited, they had been really freaked out by the whole thing and had begun to act as though they didn't have a son. He ate the food quickly and went back to staring out the window, dreaming of a time when he could be out in the world again. Then his head began to spin, darkness overcoming him. Three men ran quickly in and carried him away without a sound.  
  
* * * *  
* 


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 2 - Revelations, obsession and paranoia  
  
Incidents like this kept happening throughout the year and Lionel had kept files on all of them. His best source had ironically been a high school teen who's laughed at theory's had proven to be correct, and helped him many a time to retrieve subjects. What he had was extremely important, that he had always known. He had made sure that he was the only one who knew about these incidents, or thought anything of them, so that when he found out what was behind it he would gain the benefits of it. Clark Kent's name had come up over and over again on the files and he still never twigged that he was something out of the ordinary himself. And now here it was, the evidence that could prove Clark was the beginning of all these strange incidents, and in some ways responsible. Dr Matthews had been a very wise investment. He had hired him so that he would have a heads up on what all the rock stars, criminals and others like himself were up to, but he had never imagined he would be this useful. The doctor had not only discovered Clark's some what abnormal blood group, and witnessed a miraculous recovery from a fatal gunshot wound, but also claimed to have his weakness already figured out. He had rummaged through Lex's garden (where Jonathon Kent had thrown it) and found the bullet in question. It seemed to have remnants of the meteor rocks from the meteor show of 1989 mixed in with it's other components. The doctor had then done research on the meteor rocks themselves and found that they emitted a high band of radiation that didn't seem to effects humans by touch alone. However, having studied Clark's blood's reaction to it he had come to the conclusion that, if left for long enough in its proximity he would die. Right now he had a team of specialists working on a serum that would not kill him but neutralise his ability's for given periods of time. This was the key to their capture of Clark, as Lionel planned to achieve this by any means possible. If the doctor's theories were correct then there would be enormous benefits to being the first to know. For the doctor believed that Clark was not of this earth.  
  
* * * *  
*  
  
Lex had become even more obsessed than he had been since the crash. That he could have accepted. But Clark had healed himself of a gunshot wound in seconds leaving not even a scratch. Not only that but he had also sped out of the room so fast that it looked like he'd just disappeared. The not knowing was driving him insane. Today he was going to go to school and ask him himself. He tried going over all the possible explanations. Maybe he had been affected by the meteor shower, or maybe Lex was in some kind of dream world like in the Matrix. No that was ridiculous, but the former would fit. However, Lex had trouble believing that Clark would be afraid to tell him that. They knew lots of people like that, and they had not been afraid of them. It just didn't make sense.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Clark had become paranoid. He felt like every eye was on him, every breath held in anticipation as though everyone was waiting for him to break. He also felt a large portion of loneliness weighing down on his back. He had no one the turn too. Since he had been shot Lex had tried to ring a hundred times and Chloe had been distant since he had told her to just except his secrets. He himself had been avoiding Lana. He just didn't want anyone else to be snooping around behind his back about things. He felt like he was going to explode, like he wanted to just scream 'I'm an alien' to the whole school and get it over with. But, as he'd told his parents afterwards, when he'd seen the doctor (who was actually trying to help him) with the needle and not known what was going on, he'd experienced the most fear he'd ever had in his life. He had to live with his secrets or he would be locked up and tested on, and they'd throw away the key. In some ways he trusted Lex. He felt he would not betray him if he were to tell him the truth, but he had secrets too. He had a dark past and, Clark's father believed, dark intentions. It was something he could never do.  
  
* * * *  
* 


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 3  
  
Lex arrived at the school around lunchtime and went straight to the torch headquarters. Just as he'd expected, Clark was sitting at the computer searching random things on the web.  
  
"Clark," he said, "we need to talk."  
  
Clark looked up, shocked to find Lex here. Lex thought he noticed the slightest glimmer of fear in his eyes.  
  
"Not now," said Clark.  
  
"No, now! I need an explanation and I deserve one. Why don't you trust me?" he asked loudly.  
  
Clark sighed and looked around uncomfortably. "I can't, I just can't. It's not something that I can tell anyone." Clark walked out of the room leaving Lex still clueless to what was going on.  
  
Unknown to them Lionel had been watching all of this through a camera planted in the office, and had become intrigued. He had known that Lex had a friendship with Clark, but had not known of how close Lex always was too the truth. It would be great if Lex helped him in his project, and he was sure Lex would be grateful of his solving the mystery of his friend.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Back at the mansion Lex had come close to brooding non-stop about the situation. When his father had come waltzing into the room it had made him jump a little.  
  
"Lex," he said, "have I interrupted your scheduled thinking time. Honestly, I know the factory is easy to run but do you really have that much time on your hands?" he asked jokily.  
  
"Look I don't really have time for a verbal bashing match right now so." began Lex.  
  
"Really, do you honestly think I came all the way down here for a heated argument?" he speculated.  
  
"Why are you here?" asked Lex, suddenly seeing the abnormality of his father's visit.  
  
"It's about your friend, Clark Kent."  
  
"What about him?" he asked. His father had gotten his undivided attention.  
  
"Why don't you come with me and see for yourself?"  
  
* * * * *  
* 


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 4  
  
Lex's father had a limousine already outside ready for them. This was not the normal kind though. The windows were rigged so that no one could see in or out and there were monitors and files organised in an area in front of the seats. Seating himself round them, Lex became even more confused and curious. It looked like some sort of covert operation.  
  
"Okay Dad, what's going on?" he demanded.  
  
"I know of your anxiety towards your friends secrets. You have done your own research on him to no avail and ." he started.  
  
"Wait, how do you know?" said Lex.  
  
It must have been Nixon. He must have sold him the information for money. But then what did he expect from a tabloid sleazebag like him.  
  
"That is of no importance Lex," said his father dismissively, "As I was saying, I believe that you need my help, and I want yours. If you help me, I will help you. Do you understand me?" he asked firmly.  
  
Lex did not trust his father's words. Yet something in the way he spoke with such a sense of assuredness made Lex wonder what he knew.  
  
"What do you want me to do?"  
  
"All in good time," he said.  
  
Then he picked up a remote control, pressed a button and the screens flickered to life. They showed a number of rooms with no windows and no furniture. They looked more like hospital rooms, as there was some sort of equipment in the corners. In each was one single person most of them pacing, some banging on doors and a couple asleep.  
  
"What is this," said Lex, more confused than ever.  
  
"It is the work I have been doing secretly for the past few years. There is something special about Smallville and I believe I know what it is," Lionel told Lex, "Let me show you something."  
  
He pulled out a rather fat file from the mini cabinet. He flipped through the pages pointing out what he wanted Lex to see.  
  
"There have been a lot of unexplained events in the town. Most people have blamed the plant, which was the reason I investigated it in the first place. I couldn't have things like this planted on my name. However none of these cases began until the meteor shower. The fragments of these rocks have been left all over the town and, I believe, are responsible for these strange occurrences."  
  
Lex had already half believed this theory from his listening to Chloe and Dr Hamilton, but he didn't tell his father this.  
  
Instead he said, "What had all this got to do with Clark Kent?"  
  
"My, My Lex, your not the most observant of people are you? Here, take this," he said as he handed Lex the file. "Clark's name appears on everyone of these files. He is always, somehow involved, and in some cases, there are unexplained occurrences around him. Here on page 6 one man says he swore he had hit him with his truck."  
  
This brought memories back for Lex. The day of the crash he had swerved off onto the bridge railing. He had seen the boy's face, filled with terror as he'd hit him and had remembered feeling the guilt that he'd taken an innocent bystander with him. Then afterwards, when Clark had supposedly dove in and saved him, he had said it must have been his imagination. Yet somehow he could never believe that.  
  
"What I want you to do is to plant these bugs around the Kent house. You are his friend so it won't look suspicious you going there. Can you do that? If you can, I'll tell you the rest of what I know." Said his father in a business like fashion.  
  
Lex nodded slowly and took the bugs. His conscience screamed at him to tell his father were to shove them but curiosity got the better of him. Clark's refusal to tell him the truth had proven that he didn't trust him. Maybe the meteors had affected him somehow or had some sort of psychic powers. It wouldn't be the first time they'd both come across such a thing. Lex just couldn't understand what the big deal was. "Well if he won't be straight with me I'll just have to find other ways," he thought. Lionel, looking triumphant (which secretly annoyed Lex), signalled for the driver to turn back and gave him the directions to the Kent's house.  
  
* * * * * 


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 5  
  
Lex was dropped outside and his father drove off instantly. He wondered for a moment how he would get home, but pushed the thought out of his head. Up at the front door he had another wave of guilt. Looking at the simplicity of his home, it just didn't feel right to ruin such a perfect life. But Martha, cheerfully answering the door, interrupted his thoughts.  
  
"Is Clark in," he asked politely.  
  
"No, he's not back yet. You can wait if you want," she said putting down the plate she was drying.  
  
Lex looked around and walked towards the sideboard. Then he turned his back to it and tried to strike up a conversation to keep her eyes away from what he was doing.  
  
"While I'm here, I'll order some more of your wonderful apple pies for the Talon," he said, whilst slipping a bug behind the bread bin.  
  
"That'd be great, how many do you want?" she asked.  
  
"A dozen," he said trying to sound as normal as possible, having gone into the living room and planted a bug behind a framed picture of Clark.  
  
"Could I use your bathroom?" he said after a while.  
  
"Sure, go ahead," she said.  
  
Lex felt another twang. She was so trusting. Jonathon had always said that Lex was no good, but she had stuck up for him on several occasions and now he was doing exactly what Jonathon had thought he was capable of doing all along. He climbed the stairs, but instead of going right, he went left, into Clark's bedroom. He put one bug on top of his wardrobe and attached a computer bug to his computer. Then he came back downstairs.  
  
"I should probably go," he said abruptly. Then he walked out. Martha frowned.  
  
"That was weird", she thought to herself.  
  
* * * * * *  
  
Lionel had been going over the results of Dr Matthew's tests when he got the call from Lex confirming he had done what he asked. He sent a valet to pick him up and bring him to the secret location. Then he set up the computer equipment and studied every word muttered in the Kent house.  
  
* * * * *  
*  
  
Clark arrived home about 10 minutes after Lex had left. He told his parents of his run in with Lex and they assured him he'd done the right thing.  
  
"It's just too much," he told them, frustrated, "I can't be myself with anyone, and now I can't even be Lex's friend. This secret is killing me."  
  
"You'd have to be pretty abnormal not to want to share," said Jonathon, "but in your case it just may not be possible."  
  
"But I am abnormal. Do you know any normal people that can get hit by a car and be okay, can see through solid objects, can outrun bullets? And that's without even mentioning the spaceship in the storm cellar."  
  
"Clark, I understand, but Lex of all people can never know. You can't trust him son."  
  
"Well maybe it's up to me who I trust," he said and then ran out of the house.  
  
He wandered round for a couple of hours and ended back at his barn, pondering his thoughts. 


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 6  
  
Lionel revelled in his luck. This was amazing. And to think, if he'd dropped Lex off 20 minutes later he would have missed it all. It's like it was meant to be. When Lex arrived he revealed everything to him. The blood sample, the way the meteor rocks seemed to affect it, and finally, the recent father son conversation. Lex stood stunned. This was bigger than he had ever imagined. Clark was some sort of alien. As he thought about it he realised why Clark had never told him. In the pit of his stomach there was a small amount of fear about the whole thing. He knew for sure that if Clark himself had told him, he wouldn't have dealt with it well.  
  
Lionel called who appeared to be the head of his men and said, "Move in, from what we can tell he'll be in the barn and the ship will be in the storm cellar at the back of the house. Remove both the boy and the craft inside."  
  
They all headed out.  
  
"What are they doing," asked Lex.  
  
"They're detaining the boy for further study," said Lionel, looking at him as though he were stupid.  
  
Then the scale of what he had done hit him. He'd helped his father become the enemy that Clark had been afraid of all his life, for Lex assumed that's why he had hidden his secrets. To keep men like his father from using him to their own advantage. His own selfish curiosity may have caused an end to Clark's life, as he knew it. He had to do something. Lex ran out of the room and ordered the driver of the limo to drive to the Kent's house, while the men were still loading things into the truck. They sped as quickly as he could towards the farm. He didn't even think to open the window so he could tell where he was, although knowing his father, it would have been nailed shut.  
  
* * * *  
  
Clark watched the stars through his telescope. It was one of his favourite past-times. He would sit and wonder if any of those stars where home, and what it would be like there, what his life would be like there. He would be free of secrets and lies but would he have any family? Most of the stars in the sky had burned out millions of years ago but their light was only reaching us now. Maybe he didn't have a home out there, and this life was all he had. Still he kept wondering.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Lex was quiet as he walked up the steps. When he saw Clark his heart jumped a little. He'd seen him looking through his telescope before but it had such a heavy significance now that it seemed knew to him. He looked so normal, doing such a normal thing. Then came the slight fear again. What if Clark had just been pretending to be nice, and really he was a hostile alien who would kill anyone who knew it's secret. That didn't seem right. He took a deep breath; trying to think of all the things they'd done as friends, not to mention the fact he'd saved his life. Pushing away the doubts he cleared his throat. Clark looked up, startled. Then his face became grim.  
  
"I already told you Lex, I can't tell you everything you want to know, so you may as well just go," he said, exasperated.  
  
"That's not why I'm here Clark. Well it is and it isn't," he took a deep breath, "I know everything about you, and so does my father. He's sent a truck full of people with strict orders to come and retrieve you, they'll be here any minute."  
  
Clark's facial expression didn't change.  
  
He looked so apathetic that Lex said, "Did you just here me?"  
  
Clark made no reply. Instead he fell heavily to the floor, and lay there in a crumpled heap. Then Lex noticed the tranquilliser sticking out from his arm. "Oh shit," he thought to himself just before one man struck him on the back of the head. They carried Clark's motionless body down the stairs leaving Lex unconscious on the floor. They tried to make as little sound as possible, so as not to disturb the Kents and heaved him into the back of the truck were the ship was also being kept. Then they hooked him up to the equipment they had bought with them and drove off towards the Compound's secret location.  
  
End of part 2 


	13. Chapter 13

Secrets part 3 - Trapped  
  
Chapter 1  
  
Lex came too hazily. He looked around and tried to remember why he was in Clark's barn. Then the memories came flooding back in an instant. His father's blatant disregard of Clark's life, Clark's capture and finally his part in it all. How could he have betrayed his best friend like this? He tried to stand up and had to grab onto the stair rail to stop him from toppling over. He had to tell the Kent's that was his first objective. He ran to the farmhouse and pummelled on the front door. A sleepy Jonathon came down in his nightgown yawning. When he saw Lex he frowned.  
  
"What are you doing here at this time of night?" he asked, curiously.  
  
Lex had to steady himself again. "It's Clark, they took him," he breathed before passing out again.  
  
Jonathon caught his fall and called out to Martha. There he tried to think what he could have meant.  
  
* * * * * *  
  
Kyle Tippet had always been a patient man. He hadn't even made a fuss like the others, when he'd realised why he was here. Day and night he would hear them banging on the doors, cursing and screaming to no avail. He just didn't see the point. However he always watched them. He knew a lot of what was going on and he knew two things for certain. One was that it was damn near impossible to escape this place and two that they were getting ready for something. He'd watched them preparing a room for a new victim, but had noticed a lot more complicated equipment being loaded into it. Whoever was coming was important to them. Just as he thought this there was a commotion to his left. Four soldiers were coming through the door. Two of them were walking a teenager, who looked like he'd been drugged up to the eyeballs, rugby player style, to the room. He tried to get a good look at his face. It was Clark Kent. "Oh God," he thought. Clark had saved his life once. He'd taken bullets for him, but strangely had not been harmed. Kyle had respected Clark's secrets and not asked any questions. Instead he'd just promised not to tell anyone. Now he was in trouble. He looked awful. He seemed unaware of anything going on around him and appeared to be extremely weak. Whatever they had done to him had definitely been affective.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Jonathon and Martha tried to rouse Lex by every means possible. Finally when Martha had poured a glass of cold water on his face he began to stir.  
  
"Thank god," she breathed.  
  
"Lex, Lex you have to tell us what happened," said Jonathon, loudly.  
  
He groaned and then tried to explain. "Clark, they took him."  
  
"Who took him?" said Jonathon, trying to stay calm.  
  
"My father. He found out something about Clark. He has some sort of lab where he studies the people infected by the meteor rocks. He uses them like lab rats, god, we have to help him."  
  
Martha started to panic. She looked to Jonathon and he rubbed her arm comfortingly. Then he went back to Lex.  
  
"Lex. Where did they take him?" he asked, a little less calmly now. This was Jonathon and Martha's idea of their worst nightmare. It was because of events like this that they had kept Clark's gifts a secret. It had always been at the back of their mind and yet they had never prepared for it.  
  
"To a compound out in the desert. I don't remember where exactly," Said Lex.  
  
"Well try," he said angrily.  
  
* * * * 


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 2  
  
Clark was lying on a raised chair like the kind you find at the dentists. Other than that everything was a blur. There where people around him strapping him down, but quickly they left. Then he heard a voice.  
  
"I know everything that you have been keeping a secret from this world. I believe there is profit to be made there. However if you do not co-operate then I will terminate you and others. All I want is for you to demonstrate your powers to me." He said, coming into Clark's view half way through.  
  
He still couldn't make out the face, but the voice sounded familiar. It was Lionel Luthor. He started to panic. Where was he? Was he going to be stuck here forever, being experimented on? He wouldn't tell him anything or show him anything ever. His dad had a reason to hate Lionel. He was evil, pure and simple. Anyway, they had given him something that made him so weak that he couldn't do anything anyway.  
  
"No way," said Clark, his voice not sounding nearly as determined as he would have liked.  
  
Lionel came closer so that his face was right up against Clark's.  
  
"What good are you to anyone dead?" he whispered in his ear. "What good are you to Lana?"  
  
Clark struggled to break free. That was a threat to Lana, something he couldn't bear.  
  
"Did I strike a nerve?" he asked, the amusement in his voice too much for Clark to take.  
  
He spat in his face.  
  
"I'll never co-operate with you, you sick bastard," he said defiantly.  
  
"We'll see," said Lionel, arrogantly, "Bring it in," he told his men.  
  
They brought in a large lead box, put it down on the floor and opened it. As soon as they did Clark groaned in agony. It was the biggest piece of meteor rock that he'd ever seen. His head throbbed and he clenched his teeth and fists in a vein attempt at helping ease the pain. All the energy from his body drained and he once again found himself helpless.  
  
"I'll be back again in the morning," said Lionel, closing the big door behind him and leaving Clark taking in haggard breathes.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Kyle was desperately pacing back and forth, playing out plans in his mind. He had to help Clark, and all the others here. The whole time he had been worried about himself, but seeing Clark had brought back his unselfish reasoning. Maybe if he could get help from one other person he could help everyone. But there was a camera in every room so he would have to be quick. Or maybe.He moved to the corner of the room where the camera was, and fitted him self just behind it so that he couldn't be seen. Then he took of his shoe and smashed the camera with it. They would be sending someone down to check on him right about now.  
  
* * * * * 


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 3  
  
Martha had fallen asleep on the couch but Jonathon was wide-awake, watching Lex's every move. He was shouting into the phone and pacing so much that he was almost wearing a trench into the floor.  
  
"I know you know where it is, you drove me there and back.Yes you did.I think I'd remember," heard Jonathon from the other room.  
  
He hated sitting here doing nothing. As Clark's parents, it was their responsibility to keep him safe and it had always been their number one priority. Now it seemed to him as though they'd failed. Lex hung up the phone, then dialled in another number and started his desperate search again.  
  
"I want you to find out where my father is.Well call him.there must be some way of contacting him," said Lex, his voice growing more hopeless every word he spoke.  
  
Martha awoke as Lex hung up the phone a second time. There was an uncomfortable silence in which no one was really sure what to do. Then Lex spoke.  
  
"I think I know a way that I can find him."  
  
* * * *  
*  
  
Clark tried desperately to release himself from his bond. Lying in a lead lined room, strapped to a raised bed, a large piece of meteor rock sitting in the middle of the room, emitting it's deadly radiation, it seemed like the end of the world. Sweat trickled down his drained face, over his colourless lips. The veins in his temples throbbed, every moment a moment of agony. It felt like it would never end. But it would, he was sure. It would end when he died, and that wasn't a comforting thought. Then the door opened and Lionel walked into the room. He stood next to him, looking down on him in a questioning way.  
  
"Are you ready to co-operate yet?" asked Lionel.  
  
Clark tried to think through the growing haze in his head. If he didn't he was going to die, or someone else might. Who knows the lengths he would go too to get the answers he wanted. Inside him the basic instincts of man took over and he gave in, his only worry now was too survive.  
  
"What do you want me to do," he said.  
  
Lionel smiled. A sickening smile that added to the nausea he was already feeling. His men took away the meteor rock and Clark breathed a sigh of relief as the pain was quickly lessoned.  
  
"There now, that wasn't so hard was it?" he said with a smirk.  
  
He untied the straps and Clark sat up shakily. Then Lionel walked out the door, locking it behind him.  
  
* * * * *  
  
One soldier knocked one the door. "They thought they needed only one to deal with me, they really don't know much about me," thought Kyle as he hid behind the door. It swung open and the guy walked slowly in, looking around cautiously. Kyle grabbed the guy's hand and concentrated. They guy stood there in silence. He looked totally gormless.  
  
"Give me your keys," he said to the man.  
  
He passed them over without a question.  
  
"Now, go and tell the others that it was just a malfunction. There is no need to worry. Stay there and keep watch, try to hide everything I do."  
  
The guy started for the door.  
  
"Wait," said Kyle, "We'll need to swap clothes," he said with a grin.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Clark walked impatiently around the room. The walls were completely solid, and in his weakened state, he couldn't even have broken through wood. "How long is this going to last," he thought. Then he began to think about everyone back home, his parents, Lex, Chloe, Pete and Lana. What if she were hurt. There would be nothing he could do about it while locked up in this cage. He started to get angry. What right did Lionel Luthor have to lock up kids and study them? It almost didn't make sense. What could he possibly gain from this? It just didn't seem to fit. He tried desperately to break the door down. He kicked at it, slammed into it and eventually, after gaining many bruises; he slunk down to the floor on the verge of crying. He might as well be dead. Then, from the corners of the room, a green gas seeped out of metal pipes. "What the hell." thought Clark before the gas invaded his lungs and put him to a deep sleep.  
  
* * * * * 


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 4  
  
"This new gas has been perfected to only affect his strength. That's what you wanted right?" asked Dr Matthews.  
  
He was afraid of the man and did not want to be on his bad side.  
  
"Yes, that's right," said Lionel impatiently.  
  
After all, what was the point of having an alien in your midst if you couldn't work him to your advantage? Without his powers he was useless, but they couldn't have him escaping. Lionel watched Clark's motionless body, topple over sideways from the television screen in his office. He dismissed the doctor and begun to think what he would do next.  
  
* * * * * * *  
  
"Well what is it then?" said Jonathon, impatiently.  
  
Lex had lost the confidence he had had since he last spoke. It's like he'd just realised that he'd revealed a secret that he shouldn't have. Lex shuffled slightly. Then he straightened and walked over to the bread bin. He reached behind it and pulled out a small black box shaped device.  
  
"I know Clark's secret, I know everything. This could be traced back to wherever my father is. It is a bug that was planted here. It's been listening to every word you say. That's how my father knows what Clark is," he said quickly as though releasing a burden.  
  
Jonathon looked shell shocked and scared. Lex knew everything about Clark, which was bad enough; he had never really trusted him. But to have Lionel have been listening in on every word just gave him a shiver that went right through the bone. Then a thought occurred to him.  
  
"How did these bugs get here?" he asked.  
  
Surely they would have heard if someone had come in.  
  
"Look, I want you to understand, I never meant to hurt your family. I just wanted to know the truth and you just wouldn't." Jonathon didn't give him time to finish his sentence as he realised what Lex was saying.  
  
He punched in the face, so hard that he was knocked to the floor.  
  
"You stupid son of a bitch. Do you know what the fuck you've done? You have put Clark in the place of his worst nightmares. He's locked up in some lab somewhere and they're doing god knows what to him. I should just kill you on instinct"  
  
"Mr Kent, I'm truly sorry, and I'm doing everything I can to help. I tried to warn Clark but I was too late. I know I made a mistake but please. Let me help you," pleaded Lex, wiping the blood from his cracked lip.  
  
"Please Jonathon. We need all the help we can get," said Martha.  
  
She was always the voice of reason. Jonathon turned to his wife and then walked away from Lex to join her, without moving a finger to help him up.  
  
"So what do we do?"  
  
* * * * * 


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 5  
  
Kyle crept down hallways. He wasn't sure what he was going to do. He didn't know any of the people in here. Would they be so eager to help him? Or would they just take the key and run, leaving him back at square one. He looked into the window of the nearest door. Sitting in the corner, reading a book, she hardly noticed his presence. She was beautiful, with long flowing brown hair and deep green eyes that made him melt. She looked up from her book and stood up. She must have been here for a long time. There was no fear in the way she moved, almost like it had become second nature. Of course, dressed in his uniform, she had no idea he was here to help her. He unlocked the door. She would not look him in the eye. He stared at her for a moment until he noticed her obvious unease. "What had they done to her?" he wondered sincerely.  
  
He took of the mask (trusting that the guard was keeping what he was doing a secret) and she finally looked his way.  
  
"I'm here to help you, to help everyone here. I was a prisoner here just like yourself, but I must find a way to escape. One of my friends is trapped and I have to help him before they kill him," he tried to explain.  
  
She studied him as though trying to see if he was lying or not. When she seemed satisfied she held out her hand.  
  
"I'm Grianne, and I'll do anything if it means getting out of here," she said gratefully, offering her hand.  
  
He declined and she frowned.  
  
"I'm sorry, it's just I can't shake hands with people. They just end up doing everything I say, and I'd rather you think for yourself."  
  
She nodded. She should have assumed he had a power of some kind. Everyone in here did after all.  
  
"I'm a little out of the ordinary as well," she told him. Then she hesitated not knowing how much too tell him. She looked at him once more and then decided he was trustworthy  
  
"When I was a kid, only 6, when my house caught on fire and I was severely burned. It was the day I was having surgery to cover the scars that the meteors hit. The explosions came from all around. A piece of meteor came between the laser and my chest and the beam hit me straight in the heart. I felt surges of energy run through me and then I passed out. When I woke up, my father was standing over me. I don't exactly know how to explain it, but it's like his veils of secrecy were lifted. I just knew that he had started the fire at my house and I knew that he had done it because he had been cheating on my mother and wanted to take all the insurance money and run with the woman. I tried to tell people but they wouldn't listen. A week later he killed my mother, saying he needed to be rid of her burden, so I ran away. Then Lionel found me. He took me back to this place and used me to find out what people really thought. I was too young to understand that it was wrong. If I didn't have this gift, I would probably think of him as my father but I know his secrets. He is not really Lionel he is a shape shifter. He had been working in secret until he felt the need for Lex's help. He kidnapped Lionel and keeps him in a basement downstairs."  
  
"Wow," was all he could muster. Compared to her, his story seemed pathetic but he explained to her what had happened to him and she nodded and seemed to truly care.  
  
"That's not all," she added. "The power also allows me to deceive others. It's like it creates a veil of secrecy and they think what I want them to. They believe what I want them to see."  
  
"That is going to be useful," he said with a smile. 


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 6  
  
Clark woke up in the same place he had fallen. He felt more alert than before. He was sick and tired of being knocked unconscious. If he ever got out of here, he was going to stay out of trouble for the rest of his life. Well, at least a month. However, the chances of getting out of his room looked grim let alone the compound. He heard a click behind him and turned to the door. Lionel was standing in the doorway.  
  
"Are you ready to begin?" he asked.  
  
There was nothing he could say. His mouth had gone dry and he merely nodded. Then Lionel brought out a gun and pointed it at him. Clark panicked. In his weakened state, there was no way he would survive. The gunshot rang in his ear and everything slowed. "Wait" he thought. This wasn't just the shocked kind of slowed. This was his super speed. The realisation hit him with great excitement, as he knew he had a chance. He dodged the bullet and sped towards the door. Just before he was out of it, a meteor rock barrier knocked him to the floor. The vibrations ricocheted of him in waves and he winced in pain. Lionel spun around quickly.  
  
"That was a wonderful display of your speed Mr Kent. Pity you didn't anticipate a back up. You won't be getting out of here that easily."  
  
* * * * * *  
  
Kyle, Grianne and a group of 5 others continued down the hall. The group consisted of all those he had freed. The first was Eric Summers, a boy who had lost his powers long ago, but whom Clark had helped. He had insisted in coming along to do what he could. The next was a girl who appeared to have visions of events in her own future whose name was Jenny. The third was a mutated boy with aspects of a bird. He could see extremely far ahead, could react with quick movements and could move swiftly, without being noticed. The final two were twins who could Apparate from the place where one was to the place of the other. Together, they had avoided any confrontations. They were searching in vein for the place where Clark was being held. Each one had agreed to help, so grateful for a chance at escaping that they had felt they owed him their help. So far nothing had been found. It seemed they were the only ones in the building still alive. It sickened Kyle to look into one window and find a dead girl of only 16, lying on a table. They were even experimenting on the dead. Not even they had found peace. They rounded corner after corner until, finally, they came across a guarded room.  
  
"Leave it to me," said Grianne. She approached the guards without fear. "You may leave your posts, I need you to check on the others upstairs, get them some coffee or something," she told them.  
  
"Yes sir, Lionel sir," they replied, obediently scurrying away.  
  
The others hurried towards the door.  
  
"That's some gift you've got there," said the first twin.  
  
"Yeah, but go get coffee? That excuse did kind of suck."  
  
They both fell about laughing and the others slowly joined in. Laughing was contagious, even in the despair that they had found in here. However, they're laughter didn't last long.  
  
End of part 3  
  
Please review me. I desperately need feedback. Thank you to wallfower24 (I think I got the name right) for you reviews. You increased the number from 0 to 3. My other stories Canine, Spells and stoned are up. I'll be adding more to them soon. Have a nice day. 


	19. Secrets 19

Secrets part 4 - Consequences  
  
Chapter 1  
  
Lex stood talking to a burly looking man. Jonathon and Martha stood uncomfortably to the side. They were in a small room with three computers in. A couple of fairly young boys sat working with the bug they had given them and did not look up once until it seemed as though they had found something. The room was a mess, wallpaper peeling of the walls and a dank smell of moisture was about the air. It made them very uneasy. As if the house itself could not be trusted. Lex finished with the older man and walked over to them.  
  
"He says that the signal is coming from under Luthorcorp," Lex revealed, "Clark must be on the third level of the plant."  
  
"But that doesn't make any sense," said Jonathon.  
  
Lex had thought that too. Gabe Sullivan had once joked about alien autopsies being performed on level three, before they had known it was real and not just a rumour. Now it seemed as though he might have been right. His father must have converted it into a research facility without him even knowing. The bastard, he'd given him the plant to manage and still acted like he was running it. But if the bugs were getting signals from it, then that's were they had to go. In a way it was clever, hiding in plain site. Lex would never have thought to look there.  
  
"Where do we take it from here?" asked Martha.  
  
"I honestly don't know, maybe I could convince my father that I wanted back in," he suggested.  
  
"It's a little risky, I don't want you getting hurt," said Martha sincerely.  
  
"It's up to you," said Jonathon apathetically, "If you think it will help Clark, then do it."  
  
Lex had never thought he could fall any further in Mr Kent's eyes. But unlike all the other times that he had been pissed off with him, this time he had actually done something terrible. He didn't think he could ever face Clark again. Maybe, all though only to a small extent, saving Clark would prove him better than they thought right now. It would at least stop Jonathon from wanting him dead, even if it did mean risking his life.  
  
"I'm doing it," he finally decided.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Lionel and a team of others had come back several times during the day. They took blood samples, injected him with drugs to see if any effected him. Subjected him to numerous tasks and forced him to demonstrate his X- ray vision. It had left Clark with little of himself left. He was a wreck. Anyone who saw him would think he was crazy. The only thing that kept him going was Lana. Her name spoke to him with comfort; it was all that was keeping him from disappearing into his own heart. Hate bubbled up inside him again and he felt that he could kill Lionel for this, no matter what the consequences.  
  
* * * * * * 


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 2  
  
Kyle and the others had been searching and searching, and although they had lost track of time, they knew they should take a rest. They found an empty room and Grianne was able to make it seem like there was no door. They were safe for now.  
  
They sat on the floor and were silent for quiet a while until Jenny said, "What if we can't find this guy?"  
  
"We'll find him," replied Kyle, not letting himself believe otherwise.  
  
"How can you be so sure?" she pressed.  
  
"He's here somewhere, we just have to look harder," he told them.  
  
Then the twins looked from one to another.  
  
"What if he's dead?" they said in unison.  
  
Kyle grew angry and in his tired state he snapped.  
  
"Then we save his dead body," he barked, "You saw what they were doing to the body of that girl. I would never let that happen to Clark. Besides, he's too important for them to just kill."  
  
They all stopped asking him questions and generally stayed back from him. They were only young and did not see the importance. All except Grianne, who talked to him in a corner of a room.  
  
"Why is this boy so important to you?" she asked him.  
  
The answer was simple, "Because he saved my life. He took bullets from a machine gun for me, and he survived with no more than bruises. Now he's on his own, helpless and he needs someone."  
  
Then Kyle stopped. Why had he told her that? He had meant to reveal as little as possible as he could of what he knew about Clark. The he came to realise that they were all in the same boat. There was something about Grianne though, an immediate trust, a connection.  
  
"Wow, that's pretty amazing even by Smallville standards. I guess he must be pretty important to them," she said, shocked.  
  
She looked so innocent when she said it and it compelled him to say more than he ever had to anyone. While she was innocent, she was also brave and that astonished him.  
  
"You really are beautiful," he told her.  
  
She looked away. He didn't know the truth. If he did he wouldn't say that.  
  
"You don't know me, or how I look. I keep it hidden. My real face is a mess of scars and it's hideous. This is just a mirage."  
  
"I didn't mean your face," he said softly, "I meant you."  
  
She looked at him, reading his sincerity. There was no lies in what he said and that made her fall for him. She had never met anyone who had loved her so honestly. As his face inched closer to her's, she gasped inwardly. 'He is going to kiss me' she thought. He pressed his lips to hers and clasped his hand to the back of her neck. She let herself indulge in a moment of pure passion before pulling away. There had been guards that had told her of her beauty and tried to seduce her, but this she knew was real. Before she could register what had just happened the others suggested they had better get moving and they were gone. 


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 3  
  
Lex sat in his Porsche, speeding towards the plant. It was weird, going somewhere so familiar, knowing what he did. Over and over in his head he was going over the possibilities. What he was going to say, what he was going to do, how he could help Clark. His father was clever and not easily fooled; he'd have to make it good.  
  
* * * * *  
  
There was a noise from around the corner that sounded like someone banging. The gang approached a door to their left as they rounded a corner. They could hear what the person was saying.  
  
"Luthor.Luthor you son of a bitch, you can't keep me here forever. People will be looking for me and when they find me, you'll be dead," said the voice that Kyle recognised as Clark's. It sounded so malicious, almost a blood lust that frightened him. He'd never thought Clark was capable of that, but god knows what they had done to him.  
  
"Oh thank god," Kyle muttered under his breath.  
  
Wherever this place was it was big and it had taken them such a long time to find him that they had nearly given up hope. Kyle stepped up to the door and looked through the window. He was still wearing his uniform, although he'd forgotten about it, and Clark, not knowing any different, thought he was one of Luthor's men. He stumbled back from the window, a terrified look on his face that made Kyle wince. Then he slumped into the furthest corner of the room as though it would somehow help. Kyle slipped the key into the lock and opened the door. He walked inside and took of his mask.  
  
"Clark, it's Kyle Tippet," he said softly.  
  
"Kyle?" said Clark quietly. He spoke as though he thought he was dreaming and could only vaguely remember who Kyle was.  
  
"It's me Clark, we're here to help you, and you're going to be alright."  
  
He instructed the others inside to help him up. He looked extremely confused but co-operated just the same. They walked him rugby style to the door until Clark suddenly stopped.  
  
"Wait, I can't go through that door. There's some sort of barrier trapping me in here."  
  
Kyle thought quickly. They didn't have much time before someone realised they were missing.  
  
"Are you sure there's no way you can get through it?" Kyle asked hopefully.  
  
They all looked up suddenly as a siren rang through the building. Warning, warning, escaped prisoners on the loose. Capture and contain, capture and contain.  
  
"Uh, oh," said bird boy.  
  
Then Jenny's eyes glazed over, she cocked her head back for about 5 seconds and then looked up again.  
  
"He can get through it," she said.  
  
Clark didn't look so sure. But Kyle figured there was only one way to find out. He pushed Clark into the doorway. He screamed in pain as he fell through the barrier and out into the hallway. There were burns all over the bare skin on his chest and back and he had blacked out instantly.  
  
"I didn't say it wouldn't be painful," said Jenny with a shrug, as everyone looked over at her. 


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 4  
  
As Lex approached, he heard a siren warning that made him hopeful. "That must be Clark," he thought. Straight ahead was the plant and he entered quickly. Before he knew it he had reached the elevator. However, his dad was ruthless and was already prepared. From behind him shots rang out. Lex was forced to duck down, but in all the confusion, he made his way into the elevator and directed it straight down.  
  
* * * * * *  
  
Kyle and the gang had reached the elevator. The twins were holding up Clark, who had come too a little while back. They waited impatiently for the elevator to come down. When the doors opened, they gasped.  
  
* * * * * *  
  
Lex was stunned but quickly moved out of the way. Clark and a group of 6 others clambered into the small elevator as a group of guards came round the corner. The door closed just in time. Lex thought he recognised one of them as Kyle Tippet. Then he glanced at Clark for a second. He had never seen anyone look more out of it, but he seemed coherent. He looked away and spoke to Kyle.  
  
"What happened?" he asked.  
  
"I managed to escape, and with the help of my friends here," he gestured towards the others, " we found Clark and now you. What's going on up there?"  
  
"I came to help Clark, up there, my father's people are shooting at nothing, stupid fools," he told them.  
  
"No wait, Lex," Kyle started, "It's not your father. It's a shape shifter. Your father is . well, we don't know where he is"  
  
Lex was shocked. Maybe he had been wrong about his father. Maybe he really wasn't capable of all the evil things done here. Whoever it was, they had to be stopped. The elevator came to an abrupt stop. The doors opened and what awaited them was an eerie silence that made them hesitate. Where were all the guards? Then Lex picked himself up.  
  
"We have to get out of here," he said, realising the danger they were putting themselves in by waiting.  
  
They rushed to the front exit. Most of then were out of the door but Lex saw something. It was the spaceship. This was his chance to gain back Clark's friendship. Or at least add another brick for rebuilding.  
  
When Lex saw Kyle approaching he said, "Get out of here," he said, "I'll be alright, I can stall them. They think my father controls this operation so they won't shoot me."  
  
Kyle hesitated. The big metal garage like door had begun to close.  
  
"They need you more than I do," said Lex.  
  
"It's too dangerous. What if they know the truth about the shape shifter? Then your dead," said Kyle.  
  
With that Lex stood up and pushed Kyle through the closing doorway, just enough for one person to get through.  
  
"Lex," Kyle screamed as the door finally closed, sealing him inside.  
  
But Lex was determined to fool these people until he could find a way of retrieving the ship. Then suddenly, the elevator began to whir. 


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 5  
  
The others had found the Kents' truck with the keys still in. They all loaded in and drove to the Kent farm at the highest speed the truck would go with this many people in. When they arrived, the Kents answered the door and Martha immediately took Clark to the sofa. She wanted to cry. Thank god they had found him in time.  
  
"Clark." she whispered.  
  
"I'm okay mom," he replied reassuringly, but he started to loose his balance and Martha directed him to the sofa.  
  
* * * * * *  
  
Clark was so relieved to be home that he hardly took in the others around him, talking in muffled voices. He had fallen asleep and the way the gestured suggested they had been trying not to wake him. He stood up and they all stopped to look his way.  
  
"I want to know what's going on," he told them.  
  
* * * * * *  
  
Lex kicked the gate so hard it echoed through the hallway. He was beginning to regret having stayed behind. But it was too late now. Even as he spoke, the elevator door opened. But instead of lots of people coming in, it was just one, the shape shifter.  
  
"Dad, I tried to stop them. I came here to tell you that I want to help you."  
  
"How dumb do you think I am," he retorted, "I have eyes and ears everywhere," he glanced up at the camera, "I know you know."  
  
Lex stood still, not knowing what to say. Then he turned around and ran but he wasn't fast enough. The shape shifter shot a dart filled with a memory erasing poison into his neck and he fell to the ground.  
  
* * * * *  
  
After hearing what everyone had to say, and thanking the new people several times for helping to save his life, Clark thought over what to do. Lex was still in there, and Lionel too. It was weird to think of wanting to help Lionel, he had been the object of his hate for days now and he had had to be told twice before believing that he wasn't responsible. They had to help them.  
  
"I think we should go back for them. If we all club together, I'm sure we can figure out a plan," suggested Kyle.  
  
Most of the group seemed to agree, and even Jonathon murmured a sound that could be taken as approval. Clark, however, didn't say a word. The thought of going back was too terrifying.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Grianne watched Clark cower as the compound was mentioned. He looked terrified. When she began to read him, she realised that this was an understatement. He was so scared that she wanted to just tell him didn't have to do anything else. Inside, he could just curl up in a ball and hope his problems just went away.  
  
"Maybe Clark shouldn't be a part of this," she suggested, desperately wanting the look on his face to stop, "He's been through enough."  
  
Clark took a second to reflect.  
  
She could see that he wanted this with every fibre of his being and yet he said "No. Lex was trying to help me, the least I can do is the same for him."  
  
It was weird, because as soon as he'd turned down the opportunity, he seemed less afraid. As though he had gained a bit of self control by proving to himself that he was still strong. For the rest of the evening they devised their plan.  
  
* * * * * * 


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 6  
  
Lex woke up in a chair to which his arms and legs where bound. He hastened to open his eyes and instead just listened. There was no noise, no sound at all. He waited and then let his eyes form a slit. Through this he could survey his surroundings. His was in some sort of basement. There were haggard old boilers and the floor was concrete with puddles from the ceiling overhead, which was dripping. To his shock, his father sat in a chair to the left of him, also bound.  
  
"Dad?"  
  
"Yes Lex, it's me. I thought you'd never wake, why are you here?" he replied.  
  
"I came to help a friend." he said in a rush, "Look, we have to get out of here."  
  
"And how do you suppose we do that. I've been down here for weeks and I haven't managed it."  
  
Lex tried to think. It couldn't just be hopeless, and he didn't want to rely on the fact that someone would come back for him. All the same, he still had no idea what to do.  
  
Just at that point, the shape shifter came in.  
  
"Aww, how sweet. A father son reunion," he said mockingly, "Too bad you won't remember it in about, hmm, 24-hours."  
  
"What are you talking about?" asked Lex.  
  
"You have been giving a memory serum. You see, those others escaped, so I've decided to lay low for a while. Work my way in to a new identity and then pick up where I left off. I will get those kids back, especially Clark," he explained.  
  
Lionel got confused. "What dos Clark have to do with this?" he thought.  
  
"You can't do that," uttered Lex, in a last desperate attempt.  
  
"I can." he started as he stepped through the door, "And I have."  
  
* * * * *  
*  
  
The plan was simple. As they drove up to the plant, Clark began to think it was almost foolproof. But nothing was that easy.  
  
"Almost there," said Jonathon from the driver's seat, "Raven (the nickname that had been chosen for bird boy), are you ready?"  
  
"Sure am."  
  
Raven swept the perimeter in a matter of seconds, his swift and agile body enabling him to complete the task without being seen.  
  
"There are 5 guards at the front gate, 3 at the back, and there are a couple walking around, checking the area," he informed them.  
  
"Okay Clark, you're on," said Kyle.  
  
Clark took a deep breath. He sped towards the front gate, knocking the first guard out by ramming into him. Then a second aimed at him with a gun.  
  
"Stop right there, don't move," he ordered.  
  
Clark ignored. He grabbed the gun out of the man's hand so fast he hardly had time to register. Then he ordered them over to the truck where the group succeeded in tying up there victims. Then he snapped the lock on the gate as easy as a sodden twig. This was it, the big part. Clark, The first twin (Jason), Kyle and Grianne walked carefully down the hallways towards the basement that Jenny had seen in a vision. Jenny, Raven and the second twin (Jacob) looked over the guards while Jonathon and Martha got the car ready for loading up the truck with the spaceship. It was a wonder how the truck would move with the weight of nine people and a ship from outer space. They hoped it wouldn't conk out on them. 


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter 7  
  
Lex looked over at his father after having a very slight sleep. He had never spent more than 5 minutes of alone time with his father and even that was usually about business. Being down here alone with the man he considered an enemy was uncomfortable to say the least. He didn't trust him. However it was Lionel who spoke first.  
  
"Lex, what do you think of me?" he asked.  
  
Lex was shocked. What an odd question. Also, it was something he had never thought about really.  
  
"Why do you care? As long as the press think your great, you'll get along fine," he replied.  
  
"Lex, contrary to your opinion, I do care about you. You are my only son and you are important to me, even if you were a pain in the ass back in metropolis."  
  
"Dad, you've been down here too long. You're loosing your mind. You have never cared one bit about me," said Lex, disturbed by his father's odd behaviour.  
  
"Lex, I love you."  
  
That was too much for Lex, he had to look away. He felt sick at the revelation. His father started laughing like a lunatic. Then, when he thought more deeply on it he realised something was wrong. Before he had time to dwell on that thought a siren rang out through the building.  
  
* * * * * *  
  
Clark and the others where about 5 meters away from the door when the siren rang out. They almost lost there cool but realised that they would have to be even quicker now; there was no time for stalling. The group had split a while back. Grianne and Jason had gone to get the ship. The idea was that all they had to do was touch it and Jason could Apparate them back to his brother ship in hand. Clark hoped it had worked. He approached the door silently, expecting there to be guards but found only a small lock. Something about this wasn't right. However, they didn't have time. He would just have to take the risk. He knocked down the door to find Lex and Lionel tied to chairs in the middle of some sort of old boiler room. Two guards came round the corner and Clark left Kyle to deal with the captives while he dealt with them.  
  
* * * * *  
*  
  
The door flew of its hinges unexpectedly, narrowly missing Lex. Clark and Kyle stood in the doorway. Kyle came in without hesitation and began to untie the ropes.  
  
"Lex," he spoke in acknowledgement.  
  
"Didn't think I'd be seeing you again," said Lex stretching, his body grateful for the space.  
  
"You're not going to be gotten rid of that easily."  
  
Kyle went over to Lex's father and released him. Then he helped Lex out of the door. Two guards lay unconscious on the floor and Clark was stood waiting for them.  
  
"Lionel may need some help out." Kyle began.  
  
Clark nodded and headed into the room. Lex and Kyle made a steady retreat for the exit.  
  
* * * * * *  
  
"Mr Luthor," Clark said.  
  
The sirens had stopped and the silence had turned eerie. Lionel sat still in the chair and the shadows hid his face. As Clark took a step further the light from outside lit up his features to reveal that he was smiling. This wasn't a smile of relief or a gratification it was evil. Lionel stood up and reached his hand inside his pocket.  
  
"Mr Luthor, we have to get out of here."  
  
When Lionel did nothing, Clark started towards him, but no more than two steps away, he fell to his knees. Immediately he gasped in intense pain as Lionel pulled a flask filled with a green substance from his pocket.  
  
"You kids shouldn't have come back. You know what they say 'keep your friends close and your enemies closer', and I've kept you closer than anyone. Now I'm just going to have to kill every one of you."  
  
Whatever was in that flask, it was worse than the meteor rocks. He could hardly move, hardly breathe. His knees gave way and he was sprawled over the floor.  
  
"I did a lot of tests on the meteor rocks and I managed to work my way down to its purist form. All I have to do is pour one drop of this onto your skin and you will die." he said his face right next Clark's," . a slow and painful death.  
  
He raised the jar over Clark's head.  
  
"Any last requests?" 


	26. Chapter 26 The end

Chapter 8  
  
"Yes, you could tell me where my real father is," said Lex from behind, a gun pointed at the shape shifter's head.  
  
Lex had thought about his father's weird behaviour and realised that his father would never have said those things. He came to the conclusion it was the shape shifter, and not a minute too soon. The shape shifter turned around to face him, but still held the flask in the same place.  
  
"Well now, isn't this an interesting predicament? You can either kill the bad guy, and your friend, or you can put the gun down on the off chance that I might save you if you tell me where the others are."  
  
Lex tried to think. Through the whole speech, they had been moving around, Lex trying to survey his surroundings, the shape shifter trying not to loose eye contact for a second. Which was the safest angle to take. If he waited anymore Clark would probably die from the pain anyway so he made a snap decision. Then he caught something out of the corner of his eye that made him change his mind.  
  
"No."  
  
"No, to what?"  
  
"To both," said Lex smugly.  
  
"What are you…" he began before being struck on the back of the head. The flask landed on the floor and Kyle picked it up quickly, throwing it down the nearest corridor as Lex walked Clark out the door.  
  
* * * * * *  
*  
  
That night, Lex came up to Clark's barn to find him looking in his telescope again. What he didn't know is he was not watching stars, more like one star, Lana. Hearing Lex's footsteps he turned slowly around. This was going to be uncomfortable.  
  
"Lex, I know that it's a shock, the truth about me…" he began.  
  
"Clark wait," Lex interrupted, "there's something I have to tell you. I'm not going to remember any of this. In…" he looked at his watch, "… approximately 2 minutes I will not remember anything of the last week."  
  
"What?" asked Clark, confused?  
  
"It's something the shape shifter did. He erased my memory. That leaves you one choice. You can either tell me again, or you can act like normal. As though I never found out."  
  
"But I don't know what to do. What do you want me to do?" asked Clark, completely clueless.  
  
Lex thought long and hard.  
  
"Don't tell me," he said finally.  
  
Then his eyes glazed over.  
  
"What am I doing in your barn Clark?" he said after what seemed like hours.  
  
"You… You just came over to say hi."  
  
"Oh, well I have to go, see you Clark"  
  
Clark waved at his friend, knowing that the moment a few minutes ago was the closest Lex would ever be to Clark again.  
  
* * * * *  
*  
  
A week later Clark was back at school. He was recovering well although for the first few nights his sleep had been restless, full of nightmares and horrors he couldn't bare to face. Kyle and Grianne had gone away together, swearing to help the world, the twins had joined Smallville high, Raven had found his parents again and Jenny and Eric had fallen in love and were off travelling. It seemed that everything was right again. When Chloe saw Clark coming down the hallway she smiled so much that it looked like her mouth would break.  
  
"So, our credited farm boy decides to make an appearance," she said flirtatiously, "where have you been?"  
  
"Sick," he replied after a few seconds. After all, it wasn't exactly a lie. There's something he was sick of, lies and secrets. As Chloe put her arm in his and walked him to their lesson, filling him in on all the new stories, he wondered if one day he would ever be able to let anyone in.  
  
The End 


End file.
